Biographical notes:
For immediate release
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Ottawa – The Honourable Stockwell Day, President of the Treasury Board and Minister for the Asia-Pacific Gateway, is pleased to announce seven appointments to the Public Service Pension Advisory Committee.
John Knubley and Yazmine Laroche were nominated by the President of the Treasury Board and re-appointed.
Liseanne Forand and Bob Hamilton were also nominated by the President of the Treasury Board and were newly appointed
Gary Corbett and Milton Isaacs are the appointed employee representatives as nominated by the National Joint Council.
Jean-Guy Soulière was nominated to represent Public Service pensioners and has also been re-appointed to the committee.
The committee’s mandate is to review matters related to the administration, benefit design and funding under the Public Service Pension Plan and to make recommendations to the President about these matters. In this role, the committee is an important forum to seek the views of plan members and pensioners regarding their pension plan.
In total, the Advisory Committee consists of 13 members. Members are appointed by the Governor in Council for a term of three years with the possibility of renewal. There is no remuneration for members appointed to the Public Service Pension Advisory Committee. Biographical notes are attached.
For more information on the Public Service Pension Plan, please visit the pensions and benefits Web portal.
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For more information, please contact:
Mélisa Leclerc
Director of Communications
Office of the President of the Treasury Board
613-957-2666
Pierre-Alain Bujold
Media Relations
Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat
613-957-2391
If there is a discrepancy between any printed version and the electronic version of this news release, the electronic version will prevail.
TTY (Telecommunications device for the hearing impaired) - (613) 957-9090
Gary Corbett
President
The Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada
Office
250 Tremblay Road
Ottawa, Ontario
KlG 3J8
Curriculum vitae
Since February 2009, Gary Corbett has been the President of the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada (PIPSC). His 30 years of work experience spans organizations in the public and private sectors and includes 22 years as a federal researcher and eight years in the areas of quality management, quality control and policy development. His federal government career began in 1983 with the Department of Natural Resources Canada where he worked on Health and Safety issues as a Physical Scientist and Mining Engineer conducting operational research in the underground coal mining industry in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. During that time, he also held the PIPSC positions as the Chair of the Cape Breton Branch and Chair of the Physical Sciences (PC) Group. He was appointed in 1997 by the PIPSC as the representative to the Treasury Board Science and Technology Human Resource Management Secretariat with the goal of advancing the needs of human resource management of science in the federal government including issues of retention, recruitment and rejuvenation.
In 1998, Mr. Corbett was elected as Vice-President of the PIPSC and was instrumental in developing the Institute’s Scholarship program and effecting organizational change within the PIPSC. Between 2000 and 2004, he undertook the Directorship and Chairmanship of the PIPSC National Capital Region. In 2005, Mr. Corbett was again appointed as Vice-President of the PIPSC and was elected as full-time Vice-President in 2006 for a three year term.
Mr. Corbett holds a diploma in Chemical Engineering Technology and a Bachelor of Science Degree from the University College of Cape Breton. He also holds a Master’s degree in Mining Engineering from McGill University.
Liseanne Forand
Senior Associate Deputy Minister
Human Resources and Skills Development Canada
and Chief Operating Officer
Service Canada
Office
Place du Portage, Phase IV – Floor 1
140 Promenade du Portage
Gatineau, Quebec
K1A 0J9
Curriculum vitae
In October, 2009, Ms. Liseanne Forand was appointed Senior Associate Deputy Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development and Chief Operating Officer for Service Canada. Between 2008 and 2009, she had served as Associate Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada.
Ms. Forand began her career in the Public Service of Canada in 1986 at the Department of Fisheries and Oceans where she served until 1993. During that time, she also represented the Department on the interdepartmental team charged with the arbitration of the Canada-France maritime boundary.
Ms. Forand took a leave of absence from the Public Service in 1993 to become the first Executive Director of the Canadian Association of Prawn Producers. In 1994, she was appointed Director General of the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment, based in Winnipeg. She returned to the Department of Fisheries and Oceans in 1998 as Assistant Deputy Minister, Policy. In 2001 she joined Communication Canada as Assistant Executive Director, Programs and Communications Services and in 2003 she was appointed Assistant Deputy Minister, Northern Affairs, at Indian and Northern Affairs Canada. Between 2006 and 2008, she served as Assistant Secretary to Cabinet, Social Development Policy at the Privy Council Office.
Ms. Forand holds an Honours B.A. (in English) from Concordia University in Montréal where she also completed the course work towards a Master of Arts degree.
Bob Hamilton
Associate Deputy Minister
Environment Canada
Office
Les Terrasses de la Chaudière – Floor 27
10 Wellington Street
Gatineau, Quebec
KlA OH3
Curriculum vitae
Bob Hamilton was appointed Associate Deputy Minister of Environment Canada in January 2009.
Mr. Hamilton joined the Tax Policy Branch at the Department of Finance in 1985. He was a member of the team that developed and implemented the Goods and Services Tax (GST). Following the introduction of the GST in January 1991, he was appointed Assistant Director of the Business Income Tax Division and Director in 1992. Mr. Hamilton was appointed as General Director of the Financial Sector Policy Branch in 1995 and as Assistant Deputy Minister of that Branch in 1996. In that role, he was responsible for policies, legislation and regulations governing the financial sector, including Canada’s banks, credit unions and insurance companies. During that time he oversaw the development of policies and legislation to establish the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board.
In 2003, Mr. Hamilton was appointed as the Assistant Deputy Minister of Tax Policy and later became the Senior Assistant Deputy Minister. In that role he was responsible for development, analysis and implementation of federal tax policies. Mr. Hamilton was appointed Associate Secretary of the Treasury Board in August 2008, where he helped advance the public service management agenda and the government’s agenda to make government more efficient through initiatives such as the Web of Rules Action Plan and Strategic Reviews of departments.
Mr. Hamilton received his Honours B.A. and Master’s degrees in Economics from the University of Western Ontario.
Milton Isaacs
President and Chairman
Association of Canadian Financial Officers
Office
2725 Queensview, Suite 400
Ottawa, ON
K2B 0A1
Curriculum vitae
Mr. Milton Isaacs has over 30 years of experience in the federal government as a Comptroller and/or a financial officer. In these positions, the range of his responsibilities has included providing strategic direction to senior management, assessing risk and determining financial options. Mr. Isaacs has also been responsible for ensuring that accounting controls and oversight were established for large federal enterprises such as the Defence Science Branch, and the Naval Fleet Maintenance Facility on the East Coast of Canada, the largest naval facility in Canada. Both these enterprises had a resource base in excess of $100 million dollars. As well as the usual financial responsibilities associated with comptrollership, Mr. Isaacs was also responsible for the management of the financial team and all the related activities associated with team and human resource management.
Milton Isaacs is currently the President and Chairman of the Board of the Association of Canadian Financial Officers. The combination of his experience as President of a national union representing financial officers employed in the federal government and his employment as a professional accountant has provided Mr. Isaacs with the skills and experience in the areas of leadership, establishing vision, setting priorities, managing a multi-disciplinary staff, risk management, fiscal stewardship and investment awareness, as well as human resource management, team management, communication, and negotiation skills. Mr Isaacs is also the Director of the Vengrowth Labour Sponsor Fund.
Milton Isaacs is a Certified Management Accountant (CMA).
John Knubley
Deputy Minister
Agriculture and Agri-food Canada
Office
1341 Baseline Road, Tower 7
Floor 9, Room 349
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0C5
Curriculum vitae
Mr. Knubley began his career in the public service with the Economic Council of Canada in 1980. In 1985, he moved to the Federal-Provincial Relations Office as a Policy Analyst in the Economic Policy and Liaison Secretariats. In 1990, he was appointed Director of Research at Industry Canada (previously known as Investment Canada).
Mr. Knubley joined the Privy Council in 1994 as Director of Operations, Intergovernmental Affairs. In 1996, he moved to Human Resources Development Canada holding various executive positions culminating in his appointment as Assistant Deputy Minister, Corporate Affairs and Planning in 2000. From 2002 to 2006, Mr. Knubley held the position of Vice-President (Nova Scotia) with Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency. He was then appointed to a number of Associate Deputy Minister positions, including Associate Deputy Minister of Natural Resources in 2006-2007 and Associate Deputy Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities in 2007-2008.
Mr. Knubley returned to the Privy Council Office in 2008 as Deputy Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs. In July 2009, Mr. Knubley was appointed Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada.
Mr. Knubley obtained his B.A. at Yale University in 1974 and his Master of Arts at Oxford University in 1977. He has also obtained a post-graduate diploma from the Institut Européen des Hautes Études Internationales in 1978 in Nice, France as well as a Master’s degree in Public Administration at Harvard University from the Kennedy School of Government in 1985.
Yazmine Laroche
Assistant Deputy Minister, Executive Policies and Talent Management
Treasury Board Secretariat of Canada
Office
122 Bank Street
Ottawa, Ontario
KlA 0R5
Curriculum vitae
Ms. Laroche has over twenty years experience in public policy, program design, communications, strategic planning and corporate management, having served for a wide range of federal government departments. Ms. Laroche began her public service career in 1983 as a communications officer with Transport Canada. She was a Chief of Staff for the Department of Communications in 1989 where she was responsible for the operational management of the Cultural Affairs Sector. In 1993, Ms. Laroche was appointed Director of Government Business for the Department of Canadian Heritage. She moved to the Canada Information Office in 1996 to assume the position of Director General, Strategic Planning, Policy and Evaluation. In 1999, Ms. Laroche moved to the Department of Canadian Heritage where she was the Executive Director, Portfolio Affairs. She was promoted to the position of Assistant Deputy Minister the following year. In 2004, Ms. Laroche joined the Privy Council Office to develop the Government of Canada’s New Deal for Cities. She then held the position of Assistant Deputy Minister, Cities and Communities with Infrastructure Canada, from 2007 to 2009. Ms. Laroche is currently the Assistant Deputy Minister, Executive Policies and Talent Management Sector, Treasury Board Secretariat of Canada.
Ms. Laroche graduated from Carleton University in 1982 with a B.A. in Mass Communications. She was the co-founder of the Disabled Women’s Network of Ottawa. She was the Chair of the Advisory committee on Employment Equity (persons with disabilities) to the Secretary of the Treasury Board from 1992-1993. More recently, Ms. Laroche chaired the Action-Research Roundtable on Workplace Well-being, Canadian Centre for Management Development in 2001-02. As well, she was co-chair of the ADM Forum from 2002-2004.
Jean-Guy Soulière
Chair
National Seniors Council
Office
1052 St. Laurent Boulevard
Ottawa, Ontario
K1K 3B4
Curriculum vitae
Jean-Guy Soulière began his career in the federal government in 1965 with Consumer and Corporate Affairs and the Department of the Secretary of State. He rose through the ranks in numerous federal departments, including Consumer and Corporate Affairs, Revenue Canada, National Defence, the Public Service Commission and Agriculture Canada, culminating in 1992 with his appointment as Director General, Human Resources with the Department of Labour. Jean-Guy has also been involved in extra-curricular activities at the community level, and has been recognized for his volunteer service in various organizations. He is currently a Board member of the Recreation Association of the Public Service of Canada, and is very active in the International Personnel Management Association.
Mr. Soulière joined the Federal Superannuates National Association (FSNA) in August 1994 after a 30 year career in the Federal Government. As the Executive Director of the FSNA, he reported to the Board of Directors, was responsible for the management of the Association and for providing policy and program advice. During his career with the FSNA, he sat on a number of public service advisory committees, trusts, and other committees representing pensioners from the federal public service. He was the Chair of the Coordinating Committee and Spokesperson of the Congress of National Seniors’ Organizations until he retired from the FSNA in August of 2007. He was appointed as the first Chair of the National Seniors Council (NSC) by the Governor in Council on March 5, 2007 and has played a leadership role in the activities of the NSC.
Mr. Soulière holds an Honours B.A. from the University of Ottawa.
